Blind woman uses scooter to escape house fire

DALLAS, TX (KDFW) A woman who is blind and has trouble walking escaped an intense overnight house fire in Dallas.

Smoke detectors and strange popping sounds woke 73-year-old Caroline Ware up just before 1 a.m. Wednesday. But because of her medical issues she had a hard time getting out of her home in the 1300 block of Fernwood Avenue.

She ended up riding her scooter out the front door and then got stuck on the porch.

"It was terrible. I kept screaming for people or my neighbors. I didn't know what to do or where to go. I couldn't get off the porch," she cried.

Neighbors helped her off the porch as her home literally burned down around her.

Ware's daughter usually stays with her, but was at the store when the fire started. She got a call about the blaze and panicked.

"When we hit the corner and the house was in flames, we thought she was inside," said Sharon Deamom. "Usually she's very confused and she's not able to do things. It's a blessing she got out and I thank God for that."

Deamom said her mother had refused to sleep in her bed last night for some reason.

"Her bedroom is in the back. She kept saying she didn't feel right in the back, so I guess God kept her on that couch. Because if she would have been in the back on the bed she wouldn't have got out," she said.

The one-story brick home was completely destroyed. Ware also lost all of the medicines she takes daily.

Dallas Fire officials said the cause of the fire was accidental -- a dryer malfunction.

A bank account at Chase has been set up for those who wish to donate: Caroline Ware donation account 3306010611.